Staff were left shaken following a robbery by three masked thugs armed with knives and an axe at the Scotmid store in Law.

The terrifying incident happened at Station Road on January 4.

Around 9.15pm three masked men ran into the shop and threatened the female member of staff with the weapons.

The suspects then made off with a three-figure sum of cash and a quantity of tobacco and alcohol.

Police say the men ran from the store in the direction of Galbraith Crescent and Muir Street and into a dark-coloured vehicle before turning right onto Station Road.

The first suspect is described as white, 5ft 8ins to 6ft in height and of medium build. He was wearing a light-grey coloured ‘North Face’ tracksuit with the hood up and a grey-coloured scarf/material over his face and black trainers.

The second suspect is described as white, 5ft 8ins to 6ft in height and of medium build. He was wearing black clothing with an emblem/writing on it and black trainers with white soles. His hood was up and he had a black scarf over his face.

The final suspect is described as white and 5ft 8ins to 6ft in height and of medium build. He was wearing dark clothing with an emblem on it and black trainers with a white sole. He was also in possession of a Nike rucksack which was black in colour with a distinctive turquoise front pocket.

The shop assistant was uninjured but left very distressed, police say.

Inquiries into the robbery are continuing.

Detective Constable Iain Hughes at Wishaw CID said: “Thankfully, there was no one injured during this incident.

“However, it is vital that we catch the culprits before they get a chance to strike again and cause more fear and alarm to those people who are just going about their daily work. We are aware that there has been a recent increase in serious incidents in this area and we are looking at them both individually and collectively to establish any connection between the crimes.

“We are also increasing our uniform presence in the local area with additional patrols to help reduce any fear of crime.

“I urge anyone who was in the vicinity of Station Road around the time the robbery took place and saw the three men hanging around the shop, either beforehand or running out of it afterwards, to contact police at Wishaw immediately quoting incident number 3224 of January 4, 2018.”

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“Thankfully, the staff present during this incident were unharmed, although they were understandably shaken and distressed by the experience. Scotmid will ensure those impacted receive the support and counselling they need.

“The police investigation into this incident is ongoing and we are co-operating fully with them as they pursue their enquiries.”

In a separate incident, the previous day, Law Bowling Club was broken into. The thieves stole £90 in cash and charity boxes.